How to install firefox in chrome os

Look, the whole point of Chrome OS is…Chrome. But if you’re a rebel and a fighter, you can step outside that box and do the unthinkable: Install Firefox on your Chromebook. Here’s how it’s done.

Why You Might Want to Do This

Really, there isn’t a whole lot of practical reasoning behind installing Firefox on a Chromebook. Maybe you just love Firefox, or maybe you just like doing things because you can—you know, for fun. Sure, if you need to check something in Firefox and all you have is a Chromebook, then that can be a good enough reason, but let’s be honest here: you didn’t buy a Chromebook to use Firefox on.

So really, it’s just for the sake of it. It’s a hoot.

The Easy Way: Install Firefox for Android

While this might be considered cheating, if you’re really looking for a quick and dirty Firefox experience, just use the Android app. You can use the stable app, the beta app, and even Firefox Focus if you’re into that.

Just fire up the Play Store on your Chromebook with Android app support, search for Firefox, and install away. It’s that simple.

But like I said, that’s the easy way. And if it’s the full Firefox desktop experience you’re looking for, there is a way.

The Harder Way: Install the Linux App

This is where the fun really starts. If your Chromebook supports Linux apps (currently just the Pixelbook and Samsung Chromebook Plus do, but more are in the works), you can natively install the Linux app.

Currently, the easiest way to go about this is to install Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release), since it’s just a command away. Just fire up a terminal and type the following command:

Give it a few seconds, and Firefox will be ready to go.

Alternatively, if you’re into more security, you can also install Iceweasel directly from the terminal:

And that’s all there is to it.

The Hardest Way: Set Up Crouton

If you simply must have Firefox on your Chromebook, your device doesn’t have Linux support, and the Android app just won’t cut it, you’re left with only one option: use Crouton.

Crouton offers a way to run a Linux distribution alongside Chrome OS—you can even run it in a dedicated browser tab—so you get the best of both worlds. We have a full tutorial on installing and using Crouton to get you started.

Once installed, you can install Firefox in your Crouton installation through the terminal—you can even use the above-listed commands to install Firefox ESR or Iceweasel.

The idea behind Chrome OS is to use Chrome. But if you one who prefers the Mozilla Firefox browser and want to use it, here’s how:

Step 1: Install Firefox for Android

If you want the simple and quick Firefox experience, all you have to do is download the Firefox app. You may want to consider using either the stable app, the beta app or even Firefox Focus, but whichever you choose, it will work.

• Head to the Play Store on your Chromebook with Android app support, look for Firefox and install it.

Although this works, it does not provide the full desktop experience for Firefox. If that is what you are looking for, go for step two.

Step 2: Install the Linux App

If your Chromebook has support for Linux app, you can install it. (At the moment, only Pixelbook and Samsung Chromebook plus support Linux apps.)

• If you want to go about this the easy way, what you have to do is install Firefox Extended Support Release (ESR) which will require inputting some commands.
• Next, open up a terminal and input the command shown below:

Wait for a few seconds, after which Firefox will be ready.

But in the event that you want more security, you can also go ahead and install Iceweasel right there from the terminal:

Step 3: Set Up Crouton

If your Chromebook does not support Linux, and the Android app is not suitable for you, use Crouton.

Crouton provides a way for Chrome OS to run in conjunction with Linux. In fact, it can even be run in a dedicated browser tab. All you have to do is install Crouton.

As soon as you’re done with the installation of Crouton, you can then install Firefox in your Crouton installation with the use of the terminal. You could as well use the commands listed above to install Firefox ESR or Iceweasel.

This article explains how to download and install Firefox on a Mac.

• If you are updating from a previous version of Firefox, see Update Firefox to the latest release.

If you use an old version of OS X, see these articles for more information:

To download and install Firefox:

1. Visit the Firefox download page in any browser (for example, Safari). It will automatically detect the platform and language on your computer and recommend the best version of Firefox for you.
2. Click Download Firefox .
   • Note: If you want to have a choice of the language for your Firefox installation, click the Download options and other languages link instead.
3. Once the download has completed, the file (Firefox.dmg) may open by itself and pop open a Finder window containing the Firefox application. Drag the Firefox icon on top of the Applications folder in order to copy it there.

Tip: You can add Firefox to your dock for easy access. Just open your Applications folder and drag Firefox to the dock.

Firefox is now ready for use. Just click on its icon in the dock or Applications folder to start it.

When you first start up Firefox, you will be warned that you downloaded Firefox from the Internet. Because you download Firefox from the official site, click Open .

Upon installation, Firefox will not be your default browser, which you’ll be notified about. That means that when you open a link in your mail application, an Internet shortcut, or HTML document, it will not open in Firefox. If you want Firefox to do those things, click Use Firefox as my default browser . If you’re just trying out Firefox or simply do not wish to set Firefox as your default browser, click Not now .

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Related Articles

Firefox support has ended for Mac OS X 10.6, 10.7 and 10.8

This article applies to Mac users only. Starting with Firefox version 49, Firefox requires Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) or higher. Visit this Apple.

Consumers love options. It’s just a fact and it’s what makes our buying decisions as unique and diverse as we are. For Chromebook users, the Google ecosystem is likely the first stop when it comes to finding and using applications on Chrome OS. That said, a little variety is nice and there are some that would like to use platforms outside of Google’s offerings. One area in which that rings very true is web browsers. When you log into your Chromebook, you’re inherently going to use the Chrome browser. It is, after all, Chrome OS. That does not mean that you have to be married to Google’s browser. You have options and we have covered a few of them in the past.

You can always install the browser of your choice from the Google Play Store but the experience is not great. You’re stuck using a browser designed for a mobile device on an expansive desktop and that’s more frustrating than it’s worth. Thankfully, the addition of Linux apps to the Chrome OS landscape has opened the door to options such as the Brave Browser, Vivaldi, Tor, and others. While the gap is wide, Firefox is still one of the most popular browsers in the world slides in just behind Safari as the third-place desktop browser globally. With the help of Linux, you can install the latest version of Mozilla’s browser on your Chromebook if you are so inclined.

Last year, I mapped out the installation process of Firefox on Chrome OS but times have changed and the Linux container for Chromebooks has updated from Debian 9 to Debian 10. With that, the method for installing the latest version of Firefox has changed, albeit slightly. There are a few different ways to achieve this installation but today, we’re going to look at the one that I recommend for its simplicity and straightforward process.

Side Note: If you’re just wanting to try Firefox out on your Chromebook, you can install the ESR version from the Debian repository. Do this with the command sudo apt install firefox-esr but know that it is currently on version 78 while the latest version is 84. If you are serious about keeping and using Firefox on your Chromebook, I recommend getting the latest build for security and stability.

To install the latest version of Firefox on your Chromebook, we will need to add the repository that contains the newest build. Don’t worry. It isn’t as intimidating as it may sound. First, let’s make sure your Chromebook is set up and ready to use Linux applications. You can learn how to install and update the Linux container here. Now we need to install a text editor so we can add the Debian Unstable repository that holds the Firefox package. I use nano but you can install gedit or whichever text editor you prefer. To install nano, run the following command in your Linux terminal.

Now we need to append the source.list file. This file contains repository links that your device can point to for installing Linux packages. To add the Debian unstable repo, we need to open this file with the nano text editor. Do this with the following command in your Linux terminal.

If you have opened the file correctly, you should see what appears in the above image. Arrow down to the line below the last entry and paste the following string into the terminal. Once it’s in place, press Ctrl + X to exit and hit Y and enter to save on exit. At this point, you can technically install Firefox but don’t. You now have the unstable repository added. If you run any update commands, it will pull them from the unstable repository instead of the main repo and that could result in broken packages or unstable applications being added to your device.

To prioritize the main repository and prevent applications from updating via unstable, we need to create a preferences file to “pin” the repository. For this, we will once again turn to nano or your favorite text editor. In your Linux terminal, paste the following command to create the file with nano. Since we’re creating a new file, it will be empty.

In the file, paste the following lines exactly as they appear. Once pasted, press Ctrl + O and enter to save the file, and then press Ctrl + X to exit nano. This will pin the stable repository and prevent updates from the unstable repo.

Last but not least, it is time to install Firefox. To do so, we need to update the packages from the newly added repository. Then, we can install the latest build of Firefox. You can accomplish both of these tasks at once by pasting the following command into your Linux terminal. Once completed, you will have the Firefox icon in your app launcher and you can pin it to your shelf to have quick access to it. If you want to remove Firefox, just right-click the icon and select uninstall.

Hope you found this helpful. I’m sure that there are plenty of users out there that are looking for alternative software to install on their Chromebooks and I’m happy to help make that happen. Is there a specific non-Google bit of software you want on your Chromebook? Drop a comment below and we’ll see if there’s a way to get it working on Chrome OS. See you next time.

Firefox can now be installed on Chromebooks and other devices running ChromeOS. This article will explain the system requirements needed in order to run Firefox on ChromeOS and how to set this up.

To run Firefox on ChromeOS you first need to ensure that your system meets the following requirements:

System Requirements

• x86 based Chromebook running ChromeOS 80 or later

You can check this by going to chrome://version in the Chrome browser address bar. Follow these instructions from Google if you need to upgrade your OS.

• Enable Linux support for ChromeOS

Click here to learn more about how to set up Linux (Beta) on your Chromebook.

Once you’ve enabled Linux, check the Terminal to see if you have the correct version:

If the version is not 10 (buster) or above, you’ll need to run the update script:

sudo bash /opt/google/cros-containers/bin/upgrade_container

This script will take some time depending on how fast your Chromebook and internet speeds are. Once it’s done, you’ll need to restart your Linux container. You can either right click on the Terminal Icon and select “Shut down Linux (Beta)” or just restart your Chromebook.

• Enable Flatpak

Flatpak is a new packaging format for Linux, click here to learn how to add Flatpak support.

Install Firefox

Once the setup is complete, you can install Firefox from a Terminal:

flatpak install firefox

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Listen, the essential point of Chrome OS is … Chrome. But if you are a rebel and a fighter, you can get out of this box and do the unthinkable: Install Firefox on your Chromebook. Here’s how it goes.

Why would you like to do this

In reality, there is not much practical reason to install Firefox on a Chromebook. Maybe you just like Firefox, or maybe you like doing things because you can, you know, for fun. Of course, if you have to check something in Firefox and all you have is a Chromebook, then that may be a good enough reason, but let’s be honest here: you did not buy a Chromebook to use Firefox.

So, really, it’s just for fun. It’s a hoot.

The Easy Way: Install Firefox for Android

While this may be considered cheating, if you’re really looking for a fast and dirty Firefox experience, just use the Android app. You can use Stable application, the beta application, and even Focus Firefox if you are in that.

Just launch the Play Store on your Chromebook with support for the Android app, search for Firefox and install it. It’s so simple.

But as I said, it is easy. And if you search the entire Firefox desktop, there is a way.

The most difficult way: install the Linux application

It’s where the fun really begins. If your Chromebook supports Linux applications (currently, only the Pixelbook and the Samsung Chromebook Plus are working, but others are in the works), you can install the Linux application in native mode.

Currently, the easiest way to do this is to install Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release) because it is only about one command. Just launch a terminal and type the following command:

sudo apt install firefox-esr

Give it a few seconds and Firefox will be ready to go.

If you are safer, you can also install Iceweasel directly from the terminal:

sudo apt to install iceweasel

And that’s all there is to it.

The most difficult way: climb Crouton

If you just need to have Firefox on your Chromebook, your device does not support Linux and the Android app will not remove it. You only have one option: use Crouton.

Crouton offers a way to run a Linux distribution with Chrome OS – you can even run it in a dedicated browser tab-If you get the best of both worlds. We have a complete tutorial on the installation and use of Crouton to help you get started.

Once installed, you can install Firefox in your Crouton installation via the terminal. You can even use the commands above to install Firefox ESR or Iceweasel.

Chromebook runs Chrome OS, which is essentially the Google Chrome browser. When you power on your Chromebook, the Chrome browser will launch automatically so you can surf the Web immediately. What if you are not a fan of Google Chrome? Or perhaps you are paranoid about the data Google is collecting behind your back when you are using its browser. Luckily, there are several ways you can install Firefox on Chromebook. Here is how you can do so.

Install Firefox Android app

Most of the newer Chromebook comes with support for Android apps, which means you can easily install Firefox from the Play Store.

1. Open up Play Store on your Chromebook.

2. Do a search for Firefox.

There are several Firefox browsers that you can choose from, namely the standard Firefox, Firefox Focus and Firefox Preview. Firefox Focus is a minimal privacy browser that blocks a wide range of online trackers. Firefox Preview is an experimental browser by Mozilla. If you are looking for a browser with the most features, installing the standard Firefox browser is your best bet.

3. After the installation, you will be able the use the Android version of the Firefox browser.

Firefox for Android supports extensions, too, though the choices are pretty limited. Since it is a mobile browser at its core, you won’t get a good desktop user experience.

Install Firefox as Linux app

If your Chromebook supports Linux apps, then you can install the Linux version of desktop Firefox.

To check if your Chromebook supports the Linux app, open the menu drawer and open Settings.

In the Settings, search for “linux.”

If you see the “Linux (beta)” option, then your Chromebook can install the Linux app. Click on it to enable it (if you have not done so).

Install Firefox ESR

The underlying Linux container is running Debian, and only Firefox ESR is available in its repository. Open the terminal in the menu drawer. Type the following command to install Firefox-ESR.

Once the installation is completed, you should see a Firefox icon in the dock. You can start to use Firefox in Chromebook.

Firefox-ESR stands for Firefox Extended Support Release, which is a long-term support release. It is a stable release meant for enterprise use. Releases will be maintained for more than a year, with point releases containing security updates coinciding with regular Firefox releases. New features in the regular Firefox releases will only be made available in the ESR at the next major release, after the end of the current release’s cycle.

Install the standard Firefox

If you want to use the regular Firefox release instead of Firefox ESR, here is one simple way to install it in Chromebook.

1. First install Firefox-ESR. This will install the dependency files required by Firefox.

2. Next, remove Firefox-ESR without removing its dependencies:

3. Go to the Mozilla website and download Firefox to your Linux home folder. (Your Linux Home folder is the “Linux files” directory in the Files app.)

4. Extract the tar file to your Home folder with the following command in the Terminal. (Change the Firefox filename in the command below.)

You should now see a Firefox folder.

5. Lastly, we are going to create a Firefox desktop icon. In the terminal, type the following:

In the editor, paste the following:

Change “USERNAME” to your username in the Linux terminal. Your username is the name in the terminal before “@penguin.” In my case my username is “damienohwj.”

Save ( Ctrl + o ) and exit ( Ctrl + x ) the nano editor.

6. You should now see a Firefox icon in the menu drawer. (If not, restart your Chromebook.) Click on it and the Firefox browser will launch. It will also auto-update itself in the future.

Conclusion

While the Chrome browser is the default browser in Chromebook, that doesn’t mean you have to be stuck with it. With support for Android and Linux apps, you now have options to install the browser of your choice, including Firefox. If you like Opera or Vivaldi, you can install those as well.

Damien Oh started writing tech articles since 2007 and has over 10 years of experience in the tech industry. He is proficient in Windows, Linux, Mac, Android and iOS, and worked as a part time WordPress Developer. He is currently the owner and Editor-in-Chief of Make Tech Easier.

The idea behind Chrome OS is to use Chrome. But if you one who prefers the Mozilla Firefox browser and want to use it, here’s how:

Step 1: Install Firefox for Android

If you want the simple and quick Firefox experience, all you have to do is download the Firefox app. You may want to consider using either the stable app, the beta app or even Firefox Focus, but whichever you choose, it will work.

• Head to the Play Store on your Chromebook with Android app support, look for Firefox and install it.

Although this works, it does not provide the full desktop experience for Firefox. If that is what you are looking for, go for step two.

Step 2: Install the Linux App

If your Chromebook has support for Linux app, you can install it. (At the moment, only Pixelbook and Samsung Chromebook plus support Linux apps.)

• If you want to go about this the easy way, what you have to do is install Firefox Extended Support Release (ESR) which will require inputting some commands.
• Next, open up a terminal and input the command shown below:

Wait for a few seconds, after which Firefox will be ready.

But in the event that you want more security, you can also go ahead and install Iceweasel right there from the terminal:

Step 3: Set Up Crouton

If your Chromebook does not support Linux, and the Android app is not suitable for you, use Crouton.

Crouton provides a way for Chrome OS to run in conjunction with Linux. In fact, it can even be run in a dedicated browser tab. All you have to do is install Crouton.

As soon as you’re done with the installation of Crouton, you can then install Firefox in your Crouton installation with the use of the terminal. You could as well use the commands listed above to install Firefox ESR or Iceweasel.

Want to turn any old computer into a Chromebook? Google doesn’t provide official builds of Chrome OS for anything but official Chromebooks, but there are ways you can install the open-source Chromium OS software or a similar operating system.

These are all easy to play with, so you can run them entirely from a USB drive to try them out. Installing them on your computer is optional.

Should You Really Do This?

The Chrome OS software is made for Chromebooks. Chromebooks are designed to be simple, lightweight, and get updates directly from Google. Chromebooks aren’t just about Chrome OS—they’re about the total package of a computer with a simple operating system. It’s also possible that not all your computer’s hardware will work perfectly with the below operating systems, while Chromebook hardware will definitely work perfectly with Chrome OS.

But you may want to get a browser-focused operating system on some old PC hardware you have running around—perhaps it used to run Windows XP and you’d rather have a more secure environment. Here are some ways you can do this.

Chromium OS (or Neverware CloudReady)

Google’s Chrome OS is built on an open-source project named Chromium OS. Google doesn’t offer builds of Chromium OS you can install yourself, but Neverware is a company that takes this open-source code and creates Neverware CloudReady. CloudReady is basically just Chromium OS with a few additional management features and mainstream hardware support, and Neverware sells it directly to schools and businesses that want to run Chrome OS on their existing PCs.

Neverware also offers a free version of CloudReady for home users. It’s basically just Chromium OS modified to work on existing PCs. As it’s Chromium OS-based, you won’t get a few extra features Google adds to Chrome OS, like the ability to run Android apps. Certain multimedia and DRM features may also not work on some websites.

While this isn’t the official version of Chrome OS produced by Google, it’s better and more well-supported than previous solutions created by enthusiasts. It even automatically updates to the newest builds of CloudReady offered by Neverware, although these tend to lag behind the latest versions of Chrome OS as Neverware has to customize them.

Neverware maintains a list of officially supported devices that have been certified to run with CloudReady. It doesn’t matter if your computer doesn’t appear on this list—there’s a good chance it will work alright, too. But there’s no guarantee everything will work perfectly, as there is with a Chromebook designed for Chrome OS.

You’ll probably want to try Neverware CloudReady before installing it on a computer. All you need is either an 8 GB or 16 GB USB drive and an existing computer with Google Chrome installed. Follow our guide to creating a CloudReady USB drive and booting it in a live environment.

Give Neverware a try and, if you like it and it works well on your computer, you can install it on your computer by booting it up, clicking the tray at the bottom-right corner of the screen, and selecting “install CloudReady”. Consult the official Neverware CloudReady installation guide for more details.

Alternatively: Try a Lightweight Linux Desktop

Google officially supports Chrome on Linux. Any lightweight Linux distribution can work well, providing a minimal desktop where you can run Chrome—or another browser, like Firefox. Rather than attempting to install the open source version of Chrome OS or a Linux distribution designed to look like Chrome OS, you can just install a Linux distribution with a lightweight desktop environment—or any desktop environment, really—and use Chrome on that.

For example, Lubuntu is a great option if you’re looking for a lightweight Linux desktop that will run well on an older computer. However, any desktop will work. Consult our guide to the best Linux distributions for beginners to choose one that works for you.

Linux distributions make a great choice if you’re just looking for a basic desktop environment to browse on. They’re also a great way to upgrade any old computers you have that may be running Windows XP or Windows Vista, giving them a modern operating system with security updates and an up-to-date browser for free. You can even watch Netflix in Chrome on Linux now. There are no dirty hacks required—it just works.

Once you’ve chosen a Linux distribution, it’s as easy to try as Neverware CloudReady. Create a bootable USB drive for your Linux distribution, boot from that USB drive, and you can try the Linux environment without tampering with your computer’s software. If you decide you want to install it on your computer, you can do that right from the live environment.

Note that you may need to disable Secure Boot to boot some Linux distributions on modern PCs.

Of course, there’s no turning any old computer into a Chromebook. They won’t get Chrome OS updates straight from Google, and they won’t be optimized to boot as quickly. If you’re using a laptop, that laptop won’t necessarily offer the battery life a Chromebook does, either. But these are the best ways to approximate the experience, if you’re looking for something similar.